2020 has come and left, 2021 has come and left…but you know what hasn’t come and left? Covid and its evil variants. Without an end in sight to this virus and with so many companies adopting a fully virtual or hybrid environment, leadership teams have no choice but to adjust to this new world.
So while you’re going through the sales hiring process, here’s the #1 thing most sales candidates get wrong in a virtual sales world that you want to watch out for.
How they present themselves online:
I once interviewed a candidate virtually who had a pile of laundry sitting behind him. The worst part is that the laundry wasn’t off in the distance, it was literally right behind him and I could see the fabric. I’ve also interviewed salespeople with messed-up beds, comforter curtains, and half-naked babies in the background. Lots of car interviews too. And although everyone has been accepting of the fact that people have personal lives, these scenarios/backgrounds don’t fly in the sales world.
Therefore, your salespeople need to know two things when selling in a virtual world: common sense and how to use the equipment.
They need to have enough common sense to determine an acceptable background to use when meeting with prospects. Think about it like this, pre-covid most sales organizations sold in person which meant salespeople had to put their best face forward when meeting with prospects. Branded clothing, freshly-pressed clothing, manicured hands, and a clean office. Somehow, that’s all gone out the door since moving virtual. Sales organizations are held to higher standards and should be treated as such. Luckily, this is an easy fix: a nice background that’s not cluttered will do just fine! Bonus points for displaying your logo.
Secondly, they need to know how to use the equipment and the software that they’ll be using when meeting with prospects. That means, the computer has to be fully updated so it doesn’t update right during the meeting, they need to know how to work Zoom or other video conferencing platforms before the meeting, and they need to have a great microphone, camera, and lighting.
Lack of preparation and technology know-how has continued to affect virtual meetings even after two years of living in this new world! By having all of these things go wrong at the same time your salespeople will run the risk of looking unprepared and wasting precious meeting time trying to figure out what should’ve been taken care of before the meeting. These issues continue to hurt the company’s brand, conversion, and revenue.
Now you may be reading this and thinking I’m being too hard, but when it comes to hiring salespeople you have to be hard…because prospects are hard. The harder you qualify and the higher your standards are when hiring for salespeople the higher the probability of them succeeding in your sales world. Luckily, it’s easily fixable if you set the right standards from day one.
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